German killer bug death toll rises to 23

The death toll from an outbreak of E. coli bacteria poisoning centred on northern Germany rose to 23 after a 90-year-old woman died, authorities said on Monday.

The woman died on Friday from haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a fatal kidney complaint, after becoming infected with enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), the Schleswig-Holstein health ministry in northern Germany said.

All but one of the deaths reported since mid-May have occurred in Germany. The other fatality was a woman in Sweden who had recently returned from Germany.

Authorities are yet to identify the source of the outbreak, which has left more than 2,000 people ill in 14 countries. German consumers are advised to avoid raw sprouts, cucumbers, tomotoes and lettuce.